The Haunted Bathroom Stall
May 18, 2009
Paranormal anomalies follow me everywhere. One of my globe-trotting adventures enticed me to Tibet. To reach this destination, I had to pass the Chinese border and complete the immigration formalities. After several hours of waiting in line at Nepal, my passport details were finally entered into their system and I crossed to the other side.
The rest of my group didn’t want to proceed ahead until they had tucked in authentic local cuisine. They stumbled upon the first restaurant in sight and with feasting eyes surveyed the menu. Few of them, couldn’t wait to order while others were discussing the specialty of the day.
I ordered soup and decided to freshen up. I left my backpack with my friends to regain the flexibility of my spine. The restaurant didn’t seem to display any signs or symbols indicating a restroom so I went to inquire at the reception. The lobby was buzzing with backpackers, all waiting endlessly to check in. Though the place was a little shabby, (Well, one can’t expect Hilton at the border of two countries) but the people around didn’t seem to mind and many waited to get a table at the restaurant.
“Excuse me, Can you tell me where the restroom is?” I asked.
A woman behind the counter pointed upstairs. I dashed up the carpeted stairway only to find a blind turn. I followed it and found a landing. To my left and right, there was continuous array of rooms. The corridor was pitch black and silent. It didn’t seem like the rooms were occupied. Only the landing where I stood was lit up. I couldn’t even hear the buzz of chatter from the reception. It just didn’t feel right.
I ran down the stairs, contemplating whether I really needed to use the facilities. Then I calculated the distance and hours we needed to travel to reach the base camp by sunset, and of course, I had ordered soup.
I walked up to the lady again, “I can’t find it. Can you show me?”
She kept pointing up. I shook my head. “I can’t find it.” I said, repeatedly. But the woman didn’t seem interested to climb the twenty odd stairs and help me out
A young waitress passing from the kitchen, decided to intervene.
“Follow me,” said the doll-faced waitress.
She took me to the same landing and then took a left turn. We walked in complete darkness and found light at the end of the corridor. She smiled, bowed and left.
I stepped into the lighted restroom. Two sinks with dripping taps broke the intimidating silence. I pushed open the slightly ajar bathroom stall only to retreat instantly. It wasn’t fit for use. So I waited hoping the other shut stall would soon be vacant. I coughed, hoping that the user of the second stall would understand that someone was waiting for their turn. I paced the floor, glancing time to time at the gloomy mirrors.
To my surprise, I noticed that the entrance of the restroom didn’t have a door. Neither did it have a sign nor a picture depicting ladies or gents. Now, the muscles of my kidneys were getting strained and they definitely needed to relax. I tapped lightly on the bolted stall door. But there was still no answer. The dripping taps made things even worse. I had to go and there was no turning back. I took deep breaths- inhaled, exhaled, then held my breath and walked in. I really had to get over with it. In situations like these, I wished that I was a man.
The floor was slippery but I managed to maintain my balance. Next, the door wouldn’t shut. I pushed it, but it returned to its original position, slightly ajar. I thought maybe it would be okay, since there wasn’t a soul around. Then I realized that this could be a unisex bathroom. I pushed hard and pounded with all my strength and finally managed to close the door. I couldn’t help but turned around to see the stall. The area was really large and it was one of those facilities where the commode was embedded in the floor.
An unusual feeling swept over me. My attention was drawn to a corner of the stall and in a split second, I saw a girl sitting there with dark, flowing hair. She looked almost like Samara in the movie, The Ring. Goosebumps prickled my skin. I squatted on the floor to empty my bladder. Suddenly, I got a feeling that whoever was in the adjoining stall would spread their arms and grab my legs. Things got even worse; my kidneys were planning to set a new world record of storing over ten gallons of fluid and the water was trickling out at a very slow pace. My inner voice was ordering me- Get Out Now.
I hurriedly zipped up and tried to dash out, but the door was stuck. There was no handle from the inside. I was trapped. Like a fool, I had left my waist pouch in my backpack. It had my cell phone and prayer beads. Fear was slowly creeping in. A part of me dismissed that I had seen that girl who resembled Samara. But why would I think of the movie now. I stood calmly for a second and rationalized my thinking- “I am in China and the girls at the reception looked like movie characters.”
I was terrified to bang the door. I didn’t want to disturb the tranquility of the space and I was afraid that the banging could jam the door further. The eerie feeling lingered and something was forcing me to turn back at the wall. I didn’t want to witness what had flashed in front of my eyes few seconds ago. I felt helpless but I refused to give in. I stood on my toes and tried pulling the door from the edge. I struggled and struggled until my sweaty palms finally felt the wooden door loosen.
I ran. I stumbled in the pitch black corridor but never looked back. My heart was pounding while the veins in my temples were throbbing. Mentally I visualized my escape route. My freedom was destined if I took the first right turn. And I succeeded. I retraced my way down the stairs. Breathless and sweating profusely, I reached to my seat.
“Where were you?” asked Sage. “Sorry, we started without you.”
I collapsed on the chair and sat in silence. I skipped lunch, making an excuse that it was cold.
As I write this incident, that feeling of dread creeps in and prickles my skin again. I know whatever was lingering in that bathroom stall was certainly real.
©Nayna Chakrabarty, 2007-2009. All Rights Reserved.
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Comments
4 Responses to “The Haunted Bathroom Stall”
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nicely written
Good story. I love the kind of stories that suck you in, and you have to keep reading to the end.
Scary….. I think you will set records to have scary exp.s
whoo this one was scary..straight out from a movie like “The Grudge”
Sushant